Building on the great success of Swimmable Water Weekend held in August of 2013 on Dukan Lake, Waterkeepers Iraq is raising the stakes this year with an even longer marathon swim across the Lake from its start near Rania southwards to the Dukan Dam. What is the Swimmable Water Challenge? Waterkeepers Iraq wants to highlight the importance of swimmable, drinkable and fishable waters throughout the communities of Kurdistan. As its recent RiverWatch Report Card shows, the rivers and waterways of Kurdistan are quickly deteriorating as rivers become choked by garbage, sewage and industrial toxins and diverted without thought to their natural function and services. The once clear flowing rivers and streams of our land are becoming muddied, polluted and dried. Nabil Musa, the Iraq Upper Tigris Waterkeeper is a voice for our local rivers and river-dependent communities. He’s taken up the challenge to swim 40 kilometers from Rania to the Dukan Dam to raise attention and promote the cause of clean water and healthy rivers in Kurdistan. "As the Iraq Upper Tigris Waterkeeper, I’m here today at Lake Dukan on the Lesser Zab River to stand up for clean swimmable, drinkable, and fishable waters''.